1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to shelf-stable moist pasta. More particularly, the invention has to do with uncooked and partially cooked pasta which is moist and shelf-stable and methods of manufacturing and packaging the pasta.
2. Description of Related Art
There is a consumer demand for moist pasta products which are fresh tasting and have good microbiological quality. Shelf-stable moist pastas are particularly attractive to the retailer and consumer because they do not require refrigeration.
Uncooked and partially cooked moist pastas, which generally are defined as moist pastas which are not fully cooked, are flexible and have a moisture content between about 15 and 38 percent, have been described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,529,609 and 4,540,590. Both patents describe combinations of formulation, steaming and thermal pasteurization to produce shelf-stable, uncooked moist pasta. The disadvantage of the approach disclosed, however, is that they require the direct addition of salt and acids into the dough mix. This impairs pasta quality, particularly pasta texture and appearance.
Another type of moist pasta is pre-cooked moist pasta, which generally is defined as moist pasta that is fully-cooked and has more than thirty-eight percent moisture preferably between sixty and seventy-five percent moisture.
The pre-cooked moist pastas have been prepared by the combination of formulation treatment, either by direct addition of acid and/or salt, or immersion in acid and/or salt solution, steaming and thermal pasteurization to achieve shelf-stability. These approaches are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,597,976; 4,599,238 and 4,734,291. The major drawback of these pre-cooked moist pastas is that they have a soggy/mushy texture because the moisture difference between the core and surface portion of the cooked pasta is lost. Freshly cooked pasta has a core that was just cooked and its moisture content is relatively limited compared with the surface portion. This moisture difference is responsible for the "al dente" texture. However, as fully cooked pasta is allowed to stand after cooking, the moisture difference between the core and the surface of the pasta disappears and the "al dente" texture is lost. The pasta becomes soggy and mushy, which is the case for most pre-cooked pasta.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,789,553 discloses a method of reducing thermal processing requirements for retorting pre-cooked low acid foods by using aldonic acid and its lactone. The aldonic acid and its lactone are said to reduce thermal requirements for commercial retort sterilization and produce a product flavor similar to that of freshly prepared home-cooked pasta with no typical acid taste. Although the reduced thermal processing requirements help to improve texture and flavor, such retorted pre-cooked pasta has the textural disadvantages of sogginess and mushiness which are found in typical pre-cooked pasta. Most retorted pre-cooked pasta shows even worse textural characteristics than typical non-retorted pre-cooked pasta due to extended cooking processes normally associated with the retort process.
The present invention provides a microbiological shelf-stable uncooked or partially cooked pasta having superior texture and flavor and excellent appearance and color.